Classic TV : OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days

Re: OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days (revisited)

At least we've been getting a lot of rain lately, and at least the days are getting shorter. Still, the best time for suspense/mysteries is from about September to April in my opinion.

~~
JimHutton (1934-79) & ElleryQueen

Re: OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days (revisited)

Quite right! We had over 35C here today - and that DOES make it a little difficult to get in the mood for a dark, shady, foggy mystery...


Let's be realists, let's demand the impossible.

Re: OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days (revisited)

Thankfully, yesterday it only got up to about 16 C or something, and it was pouring. Today it's drizzling and it's about 15 C out there. THANK GOD. Seriously. I can't stand temps above 21 C, especially if it's sunny. I can't get in the mood for some great mysteries when it's hot and sunny!

~~
JimHutton (1934-79) & ElleryQueen

Re: OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days (revisited)

So, at least in YOUR parts, the weather seems to be beginning to get JUST fine for watching and listening to mysteries!


Let's be realists, let's demand the impossible.

Re: OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days (revisited)

Not for long. It's supposed to be sunny and around 30 C for the next week or so. I'm hoping that more clouds will move in maybe on Wednesday or something.

~~
JimHutton (1934-79) & ElleryQueen

Re: OT: Before the TV years - the Radio Days (revisited)

Well, at least your climate is changing from day to day - so I guess there'll always be a chance to 'throw in' a mystery on a rainy day!


Let's be realists, let's demand the impossible.

Back to radio plays very soon!!!!

The time has come to hear radio plays again!!!!

I want to hear my faves again:

A Terrible Night (The Weird Circle)

Till Death Do Us Part (Suspense)

The Devil's Saint (Suspense)

The Diary of Sophoronia Winters (Suspense)

The Voice on the Wire (Inner Sanctum)

All of these are posted on archive.org.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Back to radio plays very soon!!!!

You're ABSOLUTELY right, those long dark winter evenings are simply IDEAL for listening to creepy radio plays!! And thanks a LOT for all your wonderful recommendations!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: Back to radio plays very soon!!!!

Try the I.L.A.M "Thing that cries in the night". At least I think that was the title. Jack, Doc,and Reggie in fine form.

p.s. "The Temple of Vampires" is missing an ep or two.

Re: Back to radio plays very soon!!!!

"Thing that cries in the night" - wow, that sounds VERY good, just IDEAL for Halloween!! Thanks a lot, phantom ...!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

To find those radio plays…

To find those radio plays, just go to archive.org and type in the series name (ex. Suspense, The Weird Circle, Inner Sanctum). Then just select the title of your choice.

The ones I mentioned are some of my faves. I mentioned all of this on this thread last season, plus many more, if you want recommendations. I admit that I don't remember some of those other ones very well. If I praised them, then I must have loved them at the time but forgotten them later.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: To find those radio plays…

Of course there's tons of comedy, detective and adventure shows available; the folks who only know the boob tube stuff should really check the Old Radio tapes and cds and s_ er, listen to what they've been missing.

Here's a few thriller shows and eps to look for: LIGHTS OUT, an early show which not only had eerie stories, but had great sound effects. Many a youngster
in the bed at night really got the shivers and couldn't wait 'til the next show.

INNER SANCTUM took the unusual path of scary plot lines and a narrator who frequently made tongue in cheek comments like the yarn about the man who killed his wife, and stuffed her body in the town church bell. Unfortunately, later that night the bell *tolled on him.
Still, there's folks around who recall the eerie organ playing while a door creaked ominously and then our creepy host Raymond, saying something like "All's well that ends dreary. As we say here in the Inner Sanctum: the end justifies the scream. Pleasant dreams", <sound of creaking door closing>.

Eps: Only the Dead Die Twice; The Wailing Wall; Night is My Shroud. One especially good ep is "MAKE", this shows how much radio <in a darkened room> can be much scarier than watching a tv screen.
With the horror shows, the listener should space the eps several nights apart as the shows were supposed to be spaced a week apart.

I'll mention some other shows shortly, pleasant dreams... <creeeak thump>

Re: To find those radio plays…

Wow, you sure know your radio plays! If I start to listen to all of them, I might get through every single one by the time I'm 110 years old.....

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: To find those radio plays…

Thanks a lot for your tip! I'll start searching with your faves - today SURE is an ideal day for radio mystery plays!!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

those radio plays…MYSTERIOUS TRAVELER

Welcome back bina. Mysterious Traveler was a hybrid program with stories ranging from crime to suspense to psychological horror. The program would have the narrator on a train telling another traveler the story that would go into the regular acting performances. The show had an above high level of tales.

Eps: "Behind the Locked Door". Two explorers enter a *sealed cave that has the remains of a 19th century wagon train. They then hear sounds indicating something is alive in the cave. What or who could it be?

A good *non supernatural ep is "The Good Die Young". A young gal loves her daddy and hates her step mother, and plots to kill her. A fine performance from the young gal.

Other eps: House of Death, Dark Destiny, Woman in Black, and an interesting time travel yarn about a man who tries to go back to 1865 and stop Booth from killing Lincoln.
All in all, an underrated old time radio show.

Re: those radio plays…MYSTERIOUS TRAVELER

Thank you VERY much, phantom! Those reviews of yours are just great; and "Mysterious Traveler" sure sounds like a high-class radio show - and certainly underrated; I hadn't heard about it before either... I'll try to find something of it on YouTube!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: To find those radio plays…

Cool, cloudy day with temps just above the freezing mark....yup, I agree with you!

Enjoy those radio plays!

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: To find those radio plays…

Thanks a lot!! Temps just above the freezing mark, eh - well, that sure makes your blood chill even BEFORE you've started watching a mystery or listening to a radio play...!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: To find those radio plays…

I've been finding ways of warming up in this cold weather: I've been watching the EQ episodes!

Speaking of EQ, on archive.org, there are a lot of the EQ minute mysteries. I love those!

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: To find those radio plays…

Aah, that SURE is a good way of warming up! I guess I'll have a look at some more episodes from the TV series - and search for the radio plays, too!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: To find those radio plays…

Enjoy!

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: To find those radio plays… to read

Readers may like a series (four?) books, or download thingy, concerning old time characters in new nostalgic tales. IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN is the seies title.

I have #3 which is a "meets" gimmick that has interesting pairings of say, JOHNNY DOLLAR goes into DUFFY'S TAVERN, or, JACK BENNY MEETS RICHARD DIAMOND etc
I gotta read The WHISTLER meets MYSTERIOUS TRAVELER; those shows were quite similar and will one top the other here? But the one I'll read first will be The BICKERSONS meet FIBBER McGEE and MOLLY. The Bickersons could turn a medieval
monastery into a madhouse. "Where's the bourbon, Blanche?"

I just sent away for #1 which has a tale with "Pat Novak" involved with another Frisco detective, "Johnny Madero". Since both pre DRAGNET characters were played by Jack Webb, it sounds like it could be a snarlfest.

p.s. Anyone here ever hear Benny's skit, The Fiddler?

Re: To find those radio plays… to read

Wow! Thanks for that info! You really are an expert, opryphantom!

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: To find those radio plays… to read

No, I just have a lonnng memory. You know, those colored memories...
I did suddenly notice my long unused, small cathedral shaped ('30s style)radio gathering dust in a corner. This is from the '70s(?) with a side slot for cassettes, so I can play some of the old SUSPENSE, I.L.A.M., JACK BENNY radio stuff. This is nice for weekends when most of the tv is c.r.a.p.

I'm old enough to remember when Benny, Allen, SHADOW, Johnny Dollar, Inner Sanctum etc. etc. were still on the air. Anyone here remember OUR MISS BROOKS?
If so, gee, you're OLD!

p.s. I'm listening to MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER while typing this...

You're not old at all!

You're not old at all, even if you were alive when all those were on the air.

Those radio plays are all on archive.org, by the way.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

I'm just getting started on the Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays on archive.org. Right now, I'm listening to one called The Russian Restaurant Murder. So far, so good.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

Sound pretty nice; I think I'm gonna risk an eye - an ear, that is!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

Are youse aware that Gracie Allen played "Jerry North's" wife in the GRACIE ALLEN MURDER CASE movie? Warren William's career never recovered after playing "Fido" Vance.;-)

Re: Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

Ooh yeah, I sure remember that... movie - a real sacrilege committed on the great 'Philo Vance' movie series!! But I must admit I didn't notice that she played Mrs. North there - but then, of course, at the time I watched it I didn't even know 'Mr. and Mrs. North'...


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

I didn't notice that, either. The Gracie Allen Case is probably the poorest and most annoying of all the Philo Vance mysteries. I lost interest in it VERY quickly.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

Say good night Ms EQ!

Philo Vance

My favourite Philo Vance mysteries are:

The Greene Murder Case

The Kennel Murder Case

The Dragon Murder Case


Good night, opryphantom!

💤

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Mr. and Mrs. North radio plays

... And I was STEAMING with rage when I watched that - NONSENSE; but I sat through it, hoping that maybe at some point it would become better - but in vain...


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Kennel, Dragon, Greene

I recommend you see other Philo Vance movies:

The Kennel Murder Case

The Dragon Murder Case

The Greene Murder Case

Maybe those three will help you to forget that pile of junk which they filmed later.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

I'd seen them all BEFORE watching that... yeah, quite right, piece of junk - that's why I got so mad about it!!

Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

What did you think of those other three mysteries (Kennel, Dragon, Greene Murder Case)? Just curious.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

BISHOP is best book, but Vance "needs a kick in the pance."

The Bishop Murder Case

I liked that book (but not the film adaptation). Also, it took me only a few seconds to figure out who was the chosen killer of that book. Still, it was a fun read.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

Oh, I think they were all VERY well made, suspenseful and entertaining and stylish! My favorite 'Philo Vance' is William Powell, but Warren William also did quite well...


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

I loved the team of actors in The Kennel Murder Case. They had all the right actors for the roles of Philo Vance, the cops, and the doctor. In all the other films, at least one of them is missing.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

Of course the marvelous Eugene Pallette played the dumb detective.
Hammett early on did mystery book reviews, and really was tough on Van Dine. He complained about the lack of basic investigation by the cops so Fido, er, Philo could solve the case for them. In Manhattan? Completely absurd.

p.s. Ms Queen, with your deductive talent, you could have helped Ellery's not to
swift father solve the tv cases. :-/ The radio guy (Higgins before Hawaii?) was
almost as bad as Vance's coppers.

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

So Hammett complained about Van Dine.

I heard that Chandler complained about Agatha Christie.

Perhaps there was a bit of friction between the tough guy pulp authors and the whodunit authors.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

Yes, that's true, it was a real masterpiece; but my favorite 'Philo Vance' movie is "The Canary Murder Case" - with the great silents flapper Louise Brooks as guest star!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

I liked the first part of Canary, but found that it got a bit tiresome as the movie progressed. Besides, the ending of that one was WAY too easy to predict.

Just so you know, in the novel, the son and future daughter-in-law don't exist. Let's just say that a certain character had to act a certain way for himself, not for his son. I can PM you and anyone else with spoilers upon request.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: Kennel, Dragon, Greene

Oh, thanks a lot!!

Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Suspense: The Lord of the Witch Doctors

From the Suspense series: The Lord of the Witch Doctors, by John Dickson Carr. Not one of his best. Normally I love his radio plays, but this one is quite poor.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

The Doctor Prescribed Death (starring Bela Lugosi)

I couldn't finish that other radio play which I mentioned a few minutes ago. Rare for me to not finish a John Dickson Carr radio play.

Anyhow, I'm starting on one written by someone else, a radio play from the Suspense series called The Doctor Prescribed Death, starring Bela Lugosi. I've heard about two minutes of it so far, and it sounds like it's going to be fantastic. I don't remember it at all from last year when I listened to many radio plays.

EDIT: I just finished it a few minutes ago. Fantastic! Wow! That man sure could make women do anything he wanted them to do, not just in films but also in radio plays. I don't want to give anything away about this radio play (well, parts of it are a tad predictable), but I'll just say that this is well worth hearing mainly because of Bela Lugosi.

~~
💕 JimHutton (1934-79) and ElleryQueen 👍

Re: The Doctor Prescribed Death (starring Bela Lugosi)

WOW - I didn't even know that Bela had ever starred in any radio play! I'll sure try to find this one, sounds GREAT!!


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.

Re: The Doctor Prescribed Death (starring Bela Lugosi)

From a well known uh, notorious movie: "Would you like some wine, Bela?"
"I never drink, *wine."

Re: The Doctor Prescribed Death (starring Bela Lugosi)

Yeeeah, that's one of those UNFORGETTABLE quotes from that GREAT classic - just like "The children of the night - what music they make"...


Let us be realists, let us demand the impossible.
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